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July 5, 2010 (2010-07-05) – September 20, 2010 (2010-09-20)

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List of Highschool of the Dead episodes

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Highschool of the Dead is a 2010 Japanese animehorror television series based on the manga of the same name by author Daisuke Satō and artist Shōji Satō. The series is set in the present day, beginning as the world is struck by a deadly pandemic that turns humans into zombies. The story follows Takashi Komuro, a Japanese student at Fujimi High School who survived the initial outbreak along with several of his classmates and the school nurse, and occasionally jumps to the perspective of other characters. As the cast tries to survive the Zombie apocalypse, they must also face the additional threats of societal collapse, in the form of dangerous fellow survivors and the possible decay of their own moral codes.

The series is produced by Madhouse which is directed by Tetsuro Araki, series composition by Yousuke Kuroda, music by Takafumi Wada, character design by Hitomi Ochiai and Masayoshi Tanaka and art and sound direction by Ayu Kawamoto and Kazuya Tanaka respectively.[1] The series began airing on AT-X on July 5, 2010 and was later aired on TV Kanagawa, Tokyo MX, Chiba TV, KBS Kyoto, TV Aichi, TV Saitama, and Sun TV. The series is licensed in North America by Sentai Filmworks, was simulcast on Anime Network, and will be coming to VOD.[2] The series is also licensed in Australia and New Zealand by Madman Entertainment.[3] An OVA Bluray Disc will be bundled with the seventh manga volume on February 10, 2011.[4]

The series opening theme song is "HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD" by Kishida Kyōdan and The Akeboshi Rockets.[5] Each episode features a different ending theme sung by Maon Kurosaki.[5]

Contents

Episode list

At the beginning of the semester, Takashi Komuro has a falling out with his childhood friend Rei Miyamoto. When he goes outside to mope, he witnesses a zombie attack at the front of the school. Takashi goes to warn Rei and his old friend Hisashi, who is dating Rei, and escapes with them just before news of the attack spreads across the school, causing panic. The three run into a zombie that bites Hisashi in the arm before Takashi kills it by smashing its head. They barricade themselves on the rooftop to witness Self-Defense Force helicopters flying in to combat the zombie outbreak in the city, oblivious to the carnage in the school. Hisashi begins succumbing to his injury and Takashi is forced to kill him, despite Rei's objections. As the zombies attack the barricade, Rei and Takashi embrace briefly.

As two other survivors, Saya Takagi and Kohta Hirano, try to avoid the zombies, Rei tries to contact her father, who tells her the city is in complete chaos before being cut off. Meanwhile, kendo club president Saeko Busujima saves the school nurse, Shizuka Marikawa, from more zombies. Kohta manages to piece together a nailgun, while Takashi and Rei manage to stop the zombies on their end. As Kohta runs out of ammo and Saya starts to buckle under the pressure, the other survivors join them to take out the zombies. As they make plans to journey to Takashi's house to check on the safety of their families, they learn that the outbreak is much worse than they thought.

The survivors are shocked to learn that the zombie pandemic has spread worldwide. After encountering another group of survivors, Takashi tests a theory on avoiding the zombies based on how they can only react to sound. However, when one of the survivors accidentally makes a sound, they have to fight through a horde on the way to the bus, losing some survivors in the process. When they spot another group of survivors approaching, Rei recognizes one of the teachers, Mr. Shido, and is hesitant about letting him on board. After breaking out of the school, Rei becomes defiant about Shido appointing himself as the leader and runs off the bus. As Takashi goes after her, a bus filled with zombies crashes and traps them in a tunnel, forcing them to meet up with the other survivors later. After defeating a biker zombie, Takashi and Rei find its motorbike and head towards the city.

A recap of the past events are shown from Takashi's perspective. After the recap, Takashi and Rei continues moving through the city, until they encounter a police car. With the occupants dead, Rei searches the vehicle and gathers an Expandable baton, a revolver and some bullets. Later they start to run out of gas, and stop at a gas station. As Takashi goes to a cash register nearby to operate the gas pump, Rei is attacked by an insane survivor, who holds her hostage and sexually gropes her. Takashi quickly shoots him up-close and Rei breaks free and leaves the survivor to die in the hands of the incoming zombies. With their bike refueled, Takashi and Rei begin moving again.

At Kansai International Airport, Rika Minami and her squad from the SAT helps in the evacuation of civilians by clearing zombies at the runway. Meanwhile, after escaping from a warzone between mad survivors and zombies, Takashi and Rei learns all of the bridges have been blocked by the police and military to prevent infected civilians from coming in. Realizing nothing good is gained by staying with Shido, Saya, Kohta, Saeko and Shizuka leaves the bus after Kohta forcefully persuades him and heads to Onbetsu Bridge where they encounter more zombies and are rescued by the timely arrival of Takashi and Rei. Needing a place to stay for the night, Shizuka suggests they stay at her friend Rika's apartment where a Humvee is parked outside. With zombies infesting around the building, the group heads inside and fights them.

With the apartment cleared, the girls refresh themselves in the bath while Takashi and Kohta check the weapons and ammunition in the household. Meanwhile, the police at the blockade are coming under pressure from both the zombies and the civilians trying to escape them, including a group of protesters lead by a Conspiracy theorist who believes the epidemic is a biological weapon of the US and Japanese government. With no help coming from headquarters, the police are ordered to use deadly force to maintain order at the blockade. Back at the apartment, Takashi has to deal with a drunk Rei and Shizuka. After an argument between them, Rei starts to come onto Takashi, but he holds her back. Just then, a dog starts barking outside, which starts to attract the zombies.

While Takashi and others keep their lights low while surveying the situation, a man tries to find shelter for his daughter, Alice Maresato, but is killed by paranoid survivors. When Alice's screams attract the zombies, Takashi decides to go to rescue her while Kohta provides sniper support. Meanwhile, the girls, deciding they can no longer stay at the apartment, prepare to load up to move on. With the streets filled with zombies, Takashi, along with Alice and a small dog, carefully crosses the top of the fence until the others arrive to help him. Once reunited, they decide to head towards the other side of the river.

Zombies manage to infiltrate Air Force One. With Washington, D.C. in chaos and the Chairman and the President infected, the Chairman begs the President to launch their ICBMs in his belief that the other countries will launch theirs at the US and is finished off before he turns into a zombie. Meanwhile, Takashi's group reaches the other side of the river, where there doesn't appear to be any civilians or zombies. After changing and getting familiar with new weapons, they decide to head towards Saya's house first since it's the closest. They start to find more zombies as they approach their destination, and an unexpected wire barrier causes Rei to fall off the humvee. The others have to deal with unfamiliar weapons and their own courage in order to fend off the zombies. Outnumbered, Takashi and Saeko try to lead them away, but they are still drawn towards the others' direction. As things look bad, they are assisted by a group of firefighters led by Saya's mother, while Takashi and Saeko take a different route.

Takashi and Saeko acquire an amphibious vehicle to help evade the zombies and set up on a sand bank in the middle of the river. Later, they ditch their vehicle in a park fountain to lure the zombies while Saeko attacks them. However, Saeko freezes when she comes across some zombified children, forcing Takashi to help her. They decide to camp out at a shrine, where Saeko reveals that, four years ago, she almost killed a rapist and enjoyed it, saying she hasn't changed since that day and doesn't deserve love. Takashi responds by kissing her. The next morning, as zombies start to surround them, Saeko, hating the sadistic side of herself, gives in and does not fight back. Takashi tells her that he's always admired her, giving her the motivation to defeat the zombies with a real sword. Accepting their dark sides, Saeko and Takashi safely make it to Saya's house.

Having spent a day at Saya's mansion which has been heavily fortified, the group needs to decide if they should stick with her family and staff and be treated as kids or go off on their own and retain their independence. Saya is mad at her father for presuming she was dead during the outbreak while taking action to safe guard the neighborhood, but Takashi snaps at her knowing she's lucky knowing her parents are alive, and she calms down. Saya's father, Souichiro Takagi, a Japanese Ultra Nationalist politician arrives and executes his zombified friend in front of the survivors at the mansion to show them their current situation. Kohta, not wanting to lose his guns and become useless, refuses to give up his guns to Souichiro's men. When Souichiro arrives to question Kohta, the others come to his defense. Meanwhile, one of the students who stayed with Shido reports the situation at the mansion to Shido himself, who is presiding over an orgy between the students.

Saya tries to calm down a group of survivors who refuse to accept their current situation. The group decide to make Takashi their leader much to his surprise. Souichiro later gives Saeko a prized katana as thanks for protecting his daughter and gratitude to Saeko's father for teaching him. As the group makes plans to go and rescue their remaining families, Shido and his followers arrive at the mansion, which an angry Rei charges up to him with her bayonet. Rei reveals she hates Shido because his father, a corrupt politician asks him to forced Rei to repeat a year as revenge against her father who was investigating him for corruption. Souichiro arrives and tells Rei that Shido fate is in her hands which she decides he's not worth killing which Souichiro has Shido and his followers leave as they have become corrupt. Elsewhere, a US submarine has been given orders by the succeeding President to launch an controversial preemptive nuclear strike at China, North Korea and Russia while the crew at the International Space Station watches in horror as both the US and (in retaliation) Russia launches their ICBMs

The US Navy and the JMSDF are able to shoot down most of the retaliation missiles. However, one missile manages to penetrate through the joint US-Japanese air defenses and explodes somewhere near Japan. Due to the EMP burst from the nuclear explosion, machines and electronics near the blast break down which causes Shido's bus to crash and destroy one of the barricades. With a giant horde of zombies coming to the mansion, Souichiro orders the main gate to be closed but the overwhelming zombies breach the gate, causing panic among the survivors. With the mansion no longer safe, the Takagi's order their followers and the remaining survivors to fight and head to another safe area that has yet to be breached. The Takagi's leave Saya's safety to Takashi and the group as they fight to their Humvee which was not affected by the EMP. With their ride fixed, the group leaves the mansion while the survivors fight off the horde. Despite the situation, the group remain optimistic as they finally arrive at a mall by foot.